If you have a nanny, someone may be trying to tell you something. From the letters section of the Montclair Times …

I was taking my usual walk in Edgemont Park on Wednesday, Sept. 20, at about 11:15 a.m. when to my horrified gaze I saw a nanny dragging a child by her upper arm back to the playyard area.
The child looked like a rag doll hanging from her arm. The child was about 13-18 months and apparently one of a twin who had escaped her charge.
Surprise! The nanny was on the cell phone and not initially aware of the runaway child.
I spoke very sharply to the child caregivers who were standing at the entrance to the playyard, telling them how dangerous it was to drag a child in this manner. The child and the caregiver are apparently within walking distance of Edgemont.
Mothers and fathers both have to work today in this economy. However, please speak to your caregivers to pre-vent this kind of abuse.
JOANNE STIVALE
Montclair

Stivale isn’t the only one paying attention. There’s a whole blog devoted to nanny watching.

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Two of our favorite readers turn out to have some major talent behind the camera, and both are putting those talents on display. Fran Liscio, who was a photo editor of Rolling Stone magazine back in the day, has launched a new website, PunksandRoses, to highlight both her old pictures of punk rockers and her new work photographing roses.
Fran knows you all well enough to have anticipated the comments on this post ahead of time and, for everybody’s convenience, has written them herself:

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Today is The Ride for Hunger, presented by The Essex County Harley Owners Group (H.O.G.) and Essex County Harley-Davidson, with the Teamsters Joint Council No.73.
With riding season winding down, why not make one of the last fair-weather rides count? This police-escorted ride benefits the FoodBank. Both a fund and food-raising event (non-perishable food donations are requested), the ride takes place rain or shine.

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We wanted to like 12 Miles West’s first fall production, “Fat Pig” by Neil LaBute, more than we did. And we don’t know whether our disappointment stems from the acting, the writing, or perhaps — most intriguingly — a flaw within in ourself.
The action of “Fat Pig” can be described like this. Boy meets girl. Boy gets teased about girl. Boy dumps girl. The girl is fat. The pathos is produced by the fact that while the characters Tom (Marc Donovan) and Helen (Amanda Jornov) are really in love, Tom’s not man enough to show his love out in public.
The problem is that we can see Tom’s discomfort more than we can see why he is in love. Helen’s main personality trait is making brittle self-deprecating jokes about her weight and then — when Tom squirms — saying “just kidding.”
Is that enough basis for a chemistry? Not for us. We suspect that Neil LaBute simply didn’t write enough charm for the character of Helen. But we fear that perhaps we’re as shallow as Tom, or worse, his callous and annoying office-mate Carter (Vincent Sagona). Maybe we don’t detect the chemistry between Tom and Helen because we too are uncomfortable with the idea of a fat girlfriend.
The play is not helped by an amateurish set in which the two main areas of activity, Tom’s office and Helen’s bedroom, are set too wide. And the odd little stickers on a back wall used for projected titles just look babyish. But that’s really not the problem.
Maybe it’s just not all that enjoyable to watch Marc Donovan squirm for an hour and a half straight. (The play is performed without an intermission.) Or maybe the play is working just fine, and we’re doing exactly what LaBute had in mind. We’re squirming right along with the main character.
“Fat Pig” continues on Thursday through Saturday nights, and Sunday afternoons, through October 15. Tickets can be purchased online.

Last Chance: “Growing Up Black In Montclair 1870-1970″ closes tomorrow at Montclair Public Library. Don’t miss this moving exhibit expertly curated by Montclair native and historian Stacey Patton. Patton has collected photos, mementos, and oral testimony from Montclair residents to create a moving and thought provoking record of a little known part of Montclair’s history. Free. MPL is open Saturday until 5 p.m.
– Photo of Marjorie Chapin, 1950, courtesy of Montclair Historical Society.
Friday, September 29
Rod McDonald, singer-songwriter, plays tonight at Outpost In The Burbs. Luke Doucet opens. 8:30 pm. Tickets: $20 at the door. Reservations: 973-744-6650. First Congregational Church, 40 South Fullerton Avenue, Montclair.
The Full Monty – musical production at Studio Players Playhouse. Opens tonight, with a 2 for 1 ticket special. Playing Thursday-Sundays through Oct. 14. Adults: $20/Students-Seniors $17. Studio Playhouse, 14 Alvin Place, Montclair. 973-744-9752. www.studioplayhouse.org.

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Treasure hunters, get ready: The Montclair Cooperative School is holding a huge garage sale and estate auction tomorrow, from 7:30am -3pm. The auction includes new furniture, a couple of large flat screen TVs, bedding, books, crystal, a few antiques, and more. Silent bidding will go on all day, concluding with a live auction at 3pm. Cash and credit cards are cool.
You’ll also find loads of toys, games, kids books, furniture, jewelry, collectibles and household items at the multi-family yard sale.
Saturday’s event, a major fundraiser for the Coop, takes place at the DiMarco/Johnson home, 30 Porter Place, Montclair (corner of Harrison). Don’t worry about going hungry, they’re having a bake sale of homemade treats.
If anyone else is having a yard sale, feel free to mention it here, but from now on, you can advertise your garage sale ads FREE on Baristanet. Just visit our Classifieds.

Pedestrian safety woes aren’t unique to Baristaville — state pedestrian fatality rates are almost double the national rate. Governor Corzine is determined to take walking in New Jersey off the hazardous activity list. Last week, Corzine announced a $74 million Pedestrian Safety Initiative which promises to enable safer walking conditions through better enforcement, education and engineering.
Montclair Town Manager Joe Hartnett says he’s ready to jump on the pedestrian safety bandwagon. “We had already begun collecting traffic data and mapping current signage for such improvements,” says Hartnett. “We will be ready to go when we receive the application information from the state.”
Meanwhile, we were happy to see the above DOT banner two Saturdays ago in Upper Montclair, but wonder why it’s now gone. Hartnett didn’t know why, but told us the town has won a grant to make crossing in front of the Valley Road Starbuck’s safer – by installing a new crosswalk with embedded flashing lights.
Sure, folks hopped up on caffeine may need a little more help crossing the street, but what about a grant to make crossing at Watchung Plaza safer, for those brave souls who still dare to attempt it?

In barely seven weeks, voters will decide if Essex County Executive, Joseph DiVincenzo, will continue in office for his second term, or if Cedar Grove Councilman Joseph Chiusolo, is a better guy for the job. Campaigning activities for the two Joes have been pretty quiet so far, but get ready to hear from each candidate directly. Baristanet has invited Joey D and political opponent Chiusolo (can we call him “Joey C”?) to join us for a live chat to field questions and comments from our readers.
Mark your calendars for both online chats:
Friday, October 6, 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. Joseph DiVincenzo
Thursday, October 12, 11:30 – 12:30 p.m. Joseph Chiusolo
Hopefully our online chat will get the party started. Instructions for logging in to the chat room will follow…

Can Montclair Township possibly make bill-paying more confusing? This letter appeared in our mailbox:

Dear Barista:
I must be getting old.
Even water bills make me grumpy. The last one said something about a sewage charge. So I went into my on line bill-pay and typed in the new three-digit fee, in place of the old two-digit amount. Today I got a confusing note of thanks for all the extra cash.
Apparently, a township employee spent time photocopying our check and hand addressing an envelope containing a corrective letter because I’m now apparently too old to pay bills correctly. It says:
1. If you are paying water, make your check payable to the Montclair Water Bureau
2. If you are paying taxes, make your check payable to the Township of Montclair
3. If you are paying sewer, make your check payable to the Montclair Sewer Utility
# 3 was highlighted by hand.
The note goes on to instruct me to send all these bills go to the Department of Water Billing. Even the taxes?
The letter continues…

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Yesterday afternoon we hear there was all kinds of commotion, five or six police cars – lights flashing, on William Street, in Montclair. Deputy Chief of Police Perry Mayers told us it was a K9 unit which led them to a private residence there.
It all started when a resident on Midland Avenue heard a strange noise coming from the front of her house, around 3:30 p.m. She noticed the front window and screen, usually kept shut, was wide open. Then she saw an unknown black male, approximately 6 feet tall, leaving her front porch. The cops were called, the detective showed up, and the Sheriff’s K9 patrol was called in. At 3:54 pm the dog caught the scent and, nose to the ground, began sniffing its way through the neighborhood streets. Within 16 minutes, the trail led officers to a resident on William Street. Police questioning identified the resident as a suspect, and an arrest warrant has been issued.
Mayers says the MPD will look into getting more super sniffers on patrol…after determining if it’s in the budget.